Professor Paradox
This article is about the time traveler named Paradox. For the episode with the same name, see Paradox (Episode). Professor Paradox is a time traveling professor who can travel anywhere in space or time and within reason. While he forgot his true name from centuries being trapped in a separate reality, he now goes by the name "Professor Paradox" after taking a liking to being referred to as such. Personality Paradox is described as a calm, free-going man. He talks much like a stereotypical scientist, with dialogue requiring higher knowledge to understand completely. In his first appearance, Ben (as Swampfire) tried to capture Paradox (not knowing whether he was an enemy or not) but he always "teleports" to a place a few meters away. Ben asks how does he do that and the calm Paradox just said: "It's called walking". He really likes gumballs possibly because they virtually don't age. He also has a habit of getting events that haven't happened yet (from the perspective of the viewer and those he's talking to) and those that have (from his perspective) mixed up, due to his travels through time. His calm personality also makes it difficult to tell when he's joking or not, such as telling Kevin that if his replacement car (factory new from the past) comes in contact with anything else from the same year it'll explode like anti-matter. Powers and Abilities Due to his time in entrapment, Paradox knows how the space-time continuum works, allowing him to teleport to any location, both in time and space, slow down or speed up time as he pleases, giving him nearly limitless power, though he states there are places he cannot go and things he cannot do, though what restricts him is not yet explained. His abilities are not limited to this universe, having apparently been to other universes and the space in between. He is able to regress a person's age but seems incapable of doing it on something mechanical, instead having to pull it physically out of the past. He can also manipulate his personal time to make it appear as if he is moving (to everyone else's perspective) at superhuman speeds, but is actually just manipulating time around him and is still moving (in his perspective) at a normal velocity. He is capable of teleporting people, objects and even places like the Forge of Creation to almost any destination instantaneously without any trouble. However, he does have to follow certain rules; for example, he cannot bring the past and future versions of an individual together unless absolutely necessary. Additionally, his time travel powers have left him biologically immortal, with no need to eat or sleep. He is also capable of reverting Ben from an alien back to his human form as he did to Alien X. He can also seemingly travel to other dimensions although this is never seen. Weaknesses Having a total understanding of the the space-time continuum and the power to travel down any aspect of it, gives Paradox abilities that could theoretically rival that of a Celestialsapien, (which could explain why he is not allowed to come within 500 light years of any of them). If Paradox does have any weaknesses, it is his cryptic personality and his adherence to keep the timestream on a stable course. This in itself is a paradox as any of his failures to save a certain part of the continuum can be visited, undone and redone. Paradox had admitted that he does not lie and Eon has confirmed this. However, this is more along the lines of a warning not to disturb the timestream unduly. Getting control of Paradox's Chrono-Navigator might give one an advantage over him, though this has proven to be a double-edged sword as Eon almost destroyed all reality. Alien Force In the 1950's, an unnamed scientist having discovered special properties in quartz crystals, Paradox received government funding to break a hole in the space-time continuum. But a slight miscalculation (that caused the professor to turn timeless) and an explosion accidentally caused by his panicked assistant Hugo (the reason for the experiment going wrong - turning Hugo into a extra-dimensional creature), threw Paradox into the event horizon, where he remained for a hundred thousand (100,000) years. He was displaced outside of time, where he didn't age, sleep or eat, just exist. He went insane for a while but then got bored and regained his sanity. He soon had complete understanding of the space-time continuum. Paradox used his understanding to travel across time, making different parts of history better for others. He said he would help Ben save the "whole entire universe". Paradox soon learns that the accident sent an extra-dimensional creature fifty years from the time of the experiment. He traveled to the Alien Force time to stop it, meeting Ben's younger self. After a few fights with the creature, Ben told Paradox to take them all back to the accident, where it is discovered that Hugo was the creature. He was frightened and confused, but turning everything to dust. By preventing Hugo from being sucked into the event horizon, it negated his time-accelerating existence. After returning to Ben's present, Paradox was stoked that he didn't see it in the first place. He took an older Hugo to a behind-the-scenes look at eternity. Paradox left the trio one last gift, Kevin Levin's regressed car, factory new from 1976. But a note warns him that if the car comes in contact with anything from that era, it would explode like antimatter. Dwayne McDuffie has confirmed that the note that Paradox left Kevin was merely a joke. Paradox then later appears in the two part, season two finale, War of the Worlds meeting Azmuth to take him away from the Highbreed invasion and goes to assist Ben in fighting the Highbreed. In this he seems to be able to stop time, as his watch flashed and he just zapped past a bunch of DNAliens. Paradox appears in the episode Time Heals where he tells Gwen that time traveling is for immortals and fools. Later, he informs Gwen of the dire consequences her actions have caused. Ultimate Alien Paradox appears in the episode of Ultimate Aggregor by giving advice to Kevin. It is revealed he divided the Map of Infinity into four pieces in the past. In Perplexahedron, it is revealed he also created planet Perplexahedron to hide the final piece of the map from those who would misuse its power. Paradox appeared in The Forge of Creation, having the key to stop Aggregor from tapping into the power of Alien X by helping Ben and his team getting there and he also took 10 year old Ben home. Paradox also can't be within 500 light years near any Celestialsapien, although why he isn't allowed to go near them is currently unknown. Paradox appeared in Ben 10,000 Returns to visit Ben 10,000 and helps Ben 10,000 and Ben's team foil Eon's evil plan. At the end of the episode, he asked Ben 10,000 to restore Swampfire and Way Big. He also gives a warning to Ben's team about Old George and The Creature From Beyond before leaving with Ben 10,000. Omniverse Aware that the the universe had been destroyed in So Long, and Thanks for All the Smoothies, and replaced with a near identical one by Alien X. Sometime in his life, he was busy fighting a time war. apparently losing his right hand and replacing it with a robotic prosthetic. He had disguise his Chrononavigator (his pocket watch, noted as a GPS "to the multiverse") for safekeeping, He managed to trap Eon in the main timeline to prevent him from crossing into others to cause chaos. He returns in Ben Again, where he's lost his professor look and now has, as Ben describes it, a Steampunk general look. Following Eon switching the minds of 11-year-old Ben and 16-year-old Ben, Paradox goes fives years into the past to talk with 16-year-old Ben following Max warning him not to give spoilers about the future. He informs Ben of his involvement in the time war are the reason for his lost hand and that he has gone to great lengths to prevent Eon from causing havoc. However, Eon finds him and cuts off his right hand, which is actually his disguised pocket watch, and takes him to an alternate dimension to be interrogated. As he is not a liar, Eon knows he doesn't have the Chrono-Navigator with him and goes to take it from 11-year-old Ben. When Eon begins to use the Chrono-Navigator to bring his minions into the main timeline, time begins falling apart. He is freed from his shackles thanks to 11-year-old Gwen and 16-year-old Gwen. Instructing both Bens to use Clockwork to place Eon between both periods of time, the timeline is restored to normal and all memory of the event is erased The original Ben 10,000 later comes looking for him in 16-year-old Ben's era, saying that the Chronosapiens have gone rogue and Maltruence's beasts are on an inter-dimensional rampage, said this time war is getting out of hand. Appearances Ben 10: Alien Force *''Paradox'' (first appearance) *''War of the Worlds: Part 1'' *''War of the Worlds: Part 2'' *''Time Heals'' Ben 10: Ultimate Alien *''Ultimate Aggregor'' (first re-appearance) *''Map of Infinity'' (flashback) *''The Forge of Creation'' *''Absolute Power: Part 2'' (ID card) *''Ben 10,000 Returns'' Ben 10: Omniverse *''Ben Again'' (first re-appearance) Video Games Ben 10 Alien Force: Vilgax Attacks Paradox appears in the Ben 10 Alien Force: Vilgax Attacks video game. He first appears during the alien invasion telling Ben that it is not the time to use Alien X. After Azmuth's visit to Ben, Paradox returns and rewinds time to the point before the alien invasion. Paradox even helps Ben escape from Anur Phaetos. After Ben defeated Vilgax, Psyphon steals the energy core to power up the Null Void Projector, Paradox then appears and tells Ben that it is time to use Alien X. Trivia *Because of the nature of his abilities, it is difficult to tell exactly what order the events of the series take place, from his perspective. During his introductory episode he was already familiar with Ben, Gwen and Kevin, and later events in the series. His first meeting with them (from his perspective) has yet to be seen. During most of his appearances, he alludes to, or gives cryptic warnings of, later events in the series, only to then show up at those events, and remind the team of his past allusion, and warnings. *Dwayne McDuffie confirmed that Professor Paradox was inspired by The Doctor (especially the Tenth Doctor) of the British television show Doctor Who. Some of his similar traits are listed bellow: **Both Paradox and the Doctor dislike guns. **In the flashbacks of his debut episode, Paradox was referred to as a "doctor". But in every other episode, he is referred to as a "professor". The Seventh Doctor was nicknamed Professor. **In his debut episode, Paradox was carrying a bag of gumballs, and would often offer people one. This is similar to the bag of jelly babies (gummy candy) that the 4th Doctor carried; he would often say "would you like a Jelly Baby?" **Paradox once said "I walk in eternity," a famous quotation of the Fourth Doctor. **Neither use their real name. The Doctor's is a secret for reasons yet unknown, but Paradox has long forgotten his original name. **He also says the line "Spoilers" when someone is asking for or about to give away information about the future that should not be dispensed; this is a catchphrase of River Song, a character of Doctor Who, and she uses it under similar circumstances. **One difference between them, though, is that while the Doctor does not believe in magic, Paradox does (as seen in Time Heals). **They both have also been a part of time wars. **Both have had their right hand cut off during a fight soon after getting a "new look"; Paradox has a new look in Omniverse while the Tenth Doctor had his hand cut off after a few hours since regenerating from the Ninth Doctor. **Both have walked with a cane; Paradox uses one in Omniverse while the First Doctor needed one to get around. **Others have sought them out because of who they are and what they can do. **Paradox's Chrononavigator's former and current shape reference The Doctor's fob watch (a part of the chameleon arch) and Rassilon's glauntet respectively, the later further referencing "The End of Time". *Paradox has a recurring joke of breaking the fourth wall. When he acknowledged that the commercials were about to begin by saying "We'll come back right over there." and pointing to the location in which they did, indeed, return from the commercials. Also, in'' The Forge of Creation'', when Azmuth starts to say how Ben would be fortunate in his future, Paradox interrupted him, stating that it was a "spoiler." *The pop-up trivia version of Ben 10: Race Against Time states that Paradox also stopped Eon prior to the events of the film. *In Alien Force and Ultimate Alien, Paradox bears a strong resemblance to Devin Levin, Kevin's deceased father. *He is voiced by veteran actor David McCallum. *''Perplexahedron'' revealed that, at some point in his career, Paradox made the acquaintance of a young Max Tennyson, getting to know him well enough to pass on stories of his legendary exploits. *Like Gwen said, Paradox only appears at very important "moments" (War of The Worlds, Ultimate Aggregor, Forge of Creation and Ben 10,000 Returns), and in "time menaces" (Time Heals, Ben 10,000 Returns, ''and ''Ben Again). *It is hinted in Ben 10,000 Returns that Paradox may have an individual or group to respond to if he abuses his powers. In the same episode he also mentions that there are rules that he must follow, such as not bringing the past and future versions of the same person together unless there is a good reason. *Paradox often travels through time by opening a pocketwatch, though we know from his introduction that his abilities do not come from any device, but from his millennia in the time vortex. It is finally revealed in Ben Again that the watch is a Chrononavigator, which he compares to a GPS, and its appearance can be changed (such as in Ben Again where he's shown to have transformed it into it a gauntlet) *According to Derrick J. Wyatt, Professor Paradox knew of the events that took place in So Long, And Thanks For All The Smoothies.http://www.formspring.me/DerrickJWyatt/q/395612930428653773 References See Also */Gallery/ Category:Characters Category:Humans Category:Ben's Team Category:DNA Force Members Category:Secondary Characters Category:Heroes Category:Male Characters Category:Human Males Category:Male Heroes Category:Time Travelers Category:Males Category:Supporting Characters Category:Recurring Characters